Detroit steam motors co



A. DOBLE.

STEAM AUTOMOBILE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 4 19'7- 1,317,780. Patented Oct. 7,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

a a P)" U A. DOBLE.

STEAM AUTOMOBILE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-4.1917.

Patented Oct. 7, 1919.

2 SHEETSSHEEY 2 u vitrnn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ABNER DOBIIE, F DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR, BY MES NE ASSIGNMENTS, TO DOBLE- DETROIT STEAM MOTORS 00., 0F DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION OF DELA- WARE.

STEAM-AUTOMOBILE.

To all whom. it may concern:

Be itlrnown that I, ABNER Donna, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Detroit, Wayne county, Michigan, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Steam-Automobiles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in steam propelled automobiles.

My object is. to improve the mounting of the engine with respect to the frame of the vehicle and the driving relation gine, rear axle and dynamo or generator, my object being to provide an improved structure which will be simple, durable and reliable, and which will be effective andeflicient in operation.

Other objects of my invention will appear hereinafter.

My invention consists in the features of novelty exemplified by the construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described, shown in the accompanying drawings, and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the rear portion of a steam automobile chassis, the body being removed and the engine casing being shown in section to better disclose the parts.

Fig. 2 is a view in longitudinal section, some of the parts being shown in eleva tion.

In the drawings portion of a typical automobile frame embodying side members 10, a rear cross rod 11 and an intermediate cross beam" 12, the

side members and cross beam being rigidly braced by the diagonal plates 13. The rear portions of the frame side members rise above the plane of the rest of the frame to provide additional clearance between the frame and the rear axle parts associated therewith, and the rear ends droop downwardly and are supported by the springs 15. At their rear ends these springs are connected to short links 16 which are connected to the projecting ends of the rear cross rod 11. The forward ends of the Specification of Letters Patent.

of the en- I have shown the rear Patented Oct. '7, 1919.

springs are pivotally connected to outstandmg lugs 17 on the outside of the side beams 10' of the frame. These springs are preferably of the usual lamina or leaf construction and of the usual semi-elliptical type and yieldingly support or suspend the frame relatively to the rear axle structure of the vehicle.

The vehicle is provided with two rear wheels 18 secured to the outer end of the rear axle 19 in the usual manner. The rear axle is inclosed in the hollow tubular ta pered houslngs 20 and the outer end porti-ons thereof are j ournaled in suitable bearings (not shown) in these housings. Midway of the length of the axle is a differentral mechanism which may be of any suitable or approved character for the purpose; The differential shown in the drawings consists of a main gear 21 having a plurality of planetary miter gears 22 mounted therein, these miter gears having their axes radially disposed at 120 degrees apart and at right an gles to the axis of said-jZ-main gear. These miter gears mesh with and drive a pair of miter gears 23 on the adjacent inner ends of the two axle sections. The propelling engine A is mounted on this rear axle structure and embodies in general two steam c l- 25. This structure is connected toa crank casing 26 by means of two heavy rods or bars 27 'whichmaintain the cylinder structure and crank casing in ri id inflexible relation. These rods ex-ten throu h lon bearings 28 in the forward wall of the cran case and terminate in large sockets 29 integrally formed in the rear portion of said casing for the purpose of increasing this rigid relationship. The rear portions of the side walls of the crank case have enlarged openings in which are mounted large substantial roller bearings 30 for the inner end portions of the axle sections, these bearings being near the differential and well adapted to resist the thrusts and strains on the structure. The inner ends of the tubular axle housings are provided with annular flanges 31 which are detachably bolted to the walls of the crank case. Just forward of the axle bearings is another set of roller bearings 32 which support the ends oft-he crank shaft 33. The mountings for these bearings as well as the axle bearings heretofore described are formed by circular instanding bosses 34 which are cast integrally with the walls of the crank case. In order to make these bearings dust and dirt proof, and yet accessible, I provide cap plates 35 which cover the bearing openings, these plate bein set into the said openings and being detac ably fastened in place by means of their flanges and the bolts.

The crank shaft carries a gear 37 which meshes with and drives the main gear 21 of the differential and thus transmits the power of the engine directly to the difierential, this gear being practically of the same size and ratio. The crank shaft is driven by the piston rods 37 and connecting rods 38 in accordance with any suitable or approved construction. In this case the piston rods extend through suitable bearings 1n the forward end wall of the casing and operate crossheads in the crosshead guides 39 formed integrally with the casing. The connecting links are connected at one end to the crossheads and at their other end to the crank shaft, suitable ball or roller bearings 40 being provided for this purpose. The valves in the steam chests are operated by the valve gear 41 and valve rods 42, the latter extending through suitable glands 43 in the forward wall of the casing. The top and bottom walls of the crank case have large openings by which access can be readily had to the interior of said casing, but these openings are covered and sealed by plates 44 and 45 respectively which are securely bolted in lace. The rear wall of the casing is formed a plate 46 which is removably bolted in p ace, and this plate has an outstanding horizontal shelf or bracket 47 preferably integral therewith. This shelf forms a support or mounting for an electric generator D of suitable construction. This generator or dynamo is used forsupplying current for the various electrical equipment" employed in automo-' biles and in itself needs no particular description. It is driven, however, from the differential by means of the two intermeshing gears 48 and 49, the gear 48 meshing with and being driven by the main differential gear 21, but these gears are completely housed or inclosed by the outstanding compartment50 formed integrally with the rear plate. Both of the gears 48 and 49 have bearings in the walls of this compartment 50 and the gear 49 is fastened to the generator shaft which extends through the compartment walls 50.

The engine and power transmission mechanism are thus closely associated with the rear axle and connected in driving relation thereto without the employment of any, intermediate mechanism, and the generator is also in direct driven relation to this power transmission mechanism and is closely associated therewith in the complete and compact unit. All of these parts are completely inclosed in a single housing which protects them against dust and grit and this housing provides a suitable container for lubricating oil, and all of the moving parts are contained within this casing in such relation as to be thoroughly and properly lubricated. These arts, however, are readily accessible throug the large plate covered openings in the housing. Furthermore theengine and rear axle structure are maintained in sturdy and rigld relation and cannot become relalug 51 outstanding therefrom and a suspension member 52 is pivotally attached thereto. The lower end of this member is pivotally attached to 9. lug 53 outstanding from the engine cylinder casting. Thus any relative rotary or lateral movement between the frame and engine is taken care of, and any relative longitudinal movement is provided for by making the suspension member 52 of a serles of laminations to render it flexible and capable of yieldin to these relative movements. Thus the frame and. body of the vehicle are not in any way restricted in their movement and the supporting springs are not affected in their action.

I claim:

1. The combination of a vehicle frame and a rear axle having a differential gear, an electric generator mounted to the rear of said axle, geared to and driven by said differential gear, a steam engine geared to and driving said differential gear, and means supporting said engine, differential and generator in operative relation.

2. The combination of a vehicle frame and a rear axle having a differential gear, an electric generator mounted to the rear of said axle, geared to and driven by said differential gear, a steam engine geared to and driving said differential gear, a commonhousing inclosing and supporting said engine, gearing, differential and generator gearng in operative relation, and a flexible support from axle within the housing, a propelling engine having a crank shaft journals-d within and Signed by meat Chicago, Illinois, this supported by tflfi e housing ard arranged to 23rd day of November, 1916.

drive -said di erential, an a generator mounted to the rear of said axle and support- ABNER DOBLE' 5 ed by said housing and having driving gears Witnesses:

disposed within the housing and meshing E. H. CLEGG,

with and driven by said differential. AMY JEHLE. 

